Saturday, July 2, 2016

Many mid-20th century rural school students in Dawes County will remember the name John Castek, who was a long-time Dawes County School Superintendent and also had served as superintendent at Whitney School. His teaching chores included Latin, English, algebra, geometry and history. He received his college preparatory training at Chadron Normal and earned his B.A. degree at the University of Nebraska. He taught at Ardmore, S.D. before taking a job in Whitney, according to the 1942 "Souvenir Issue" of the Whitney "Shunga" school newspaper. Born in 1894, John's parents immigrated from Moravia, the region now known as the Czech Republic, and they settled on land south of Chadron. The elder Castek was also named John, and his biography was among those included in the 1909 Compendium of History Reminiscence and Biography of Western Nebraska distributed by the Alden Publishing Company of Chicago. That biography is shared here.

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John Castek, one of the prominent and successful farmers of Dawes county, Nebraska, comes of Bohemian stock, and is a worthy representative of the best traits of his race and blood.

He was born on a farm in Moravia in 1863. His father was a carpenter who lived and died in his native land. Our subject grew up there until he was sixteen years of age, then came to America, landing in New York city in June, 1880, and came west at once to Colfax county, Nebraska, following farm work in the eastern part of the state for several years.

In the spring of 1886 he moved to Dawes county, locating on his present farm, in section 31, township 31, range 48, and there built a dugout and hatched for awhile. His first team were oxen, and he owned a half interest in a plow and wagon, with which the farm was broken up and crops put in. Soon after coming here the drouths struck the section, and as he was unable to raise anything on his land he tried to sell out, offering his place for two hundred dollars, but even at that price could get no buyer so was compelled to stay. He kept on trying to improve his farm, and in '89 had the finest prospects for a good crop and was getting ready to harvest, when a hail storm struck the region and completely ruined his crop.

Mr. and Mrs. John Castek

The next year he took out hail insurance and mortgaged his team to pay the assessment, and was again hailed out, but when he tried to collect damage, he was unable to get a cent, but he kept on carrying insurance for several years, but for some reason dropped it one year, and that very year he was again completely hailed out, having this experience for four years altogether.

During late years he has raised good crops, and he has plenty of hay and pasture for his cattle of which he keeps a large number, most of the time having two hundred head, besides running them for other farmers. He has about nine horses and his range is admirably adapted to stock raising of all kinds.

In 1889 Mr. Castek was married to Miss Anny Potmesil, and she died June 16, 1896, leaving a family of two children, Francis, born August 14, 1892; and John, born September 6, 1894.

In 1898 Mr. Castek was married again, to Miss Jennie Kratochvil, born in Bohemia, daughter of Joseph Kratochvil. Mrs. Castek came to America in 1893 together with a sister, they coming to Chadron, Dawes county, Nebraska.

Mr. Castek spends all his time on his ranch building up his home, and is one of the well-to-do and progressive agriculturists in the county. He is a Republican, and keeps well up with the time in politics locally. He is a genial, whole-souled gentleman and is full of social qualities that bring him many friends. On another page of this volume will be found a picture of their residence and also portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Castek.

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Note: The younger John Castek received a good formal education, followed by teaching jobs in North Dakota, South Dakota. He was selected Dawes County School Superintendent and served in that capacity for many years. His wife, Mildred, was a long-time and well-known legal secretary in Chadron. Their son, Jack, graduated from Chadron High School in 1961 and also pursued a long and successful career in education.

Monday, June 13, 2016

Chadron Record publishing a five-part series about Whitney Irrigation District

Workers toil during installation of the White River diversion line west of Whitney Lake (1923-25)

We were contacted a few weeks ago about sharing several Whitney Irrigation District photographs we'd posted in Whitney Reflections photo galleries some years back. The caller was Kerri Rempp, editor for the Chadron Record, who alerted us to a series of five stories she's authoring about the "creation and struggles" of the irrigation district in its early years.

A couple of the stories already have been published in the Record, and we're providing links to them from this Whitney Reflections website. And as each part of this series appears online, we'll provide a link to the story. You'll find those links displayed at the top of the column on the right side of this page.

Kerri has done a good job poring through and making sense of the old irrigation district documents, including the considerable works assembled by George Lawrence. We think you'll enjoy her stories and encourage you to read each of the five parts in the series.

Monday, February 1, 2016

Another life-long Dawes County resident has died. Milton Arner passed away Wednesday, January 27, 2016. Below is his obituary as it appeared on the Chamberlain Chapel website.

Funeral services for Milton E. Arner, 90, of Whitney,
Nebraska are Wednesday, February 3, 2016 at 1:00
PM at Chamberlain Chapel in Chadron with Dr. Russ
Seger officiating. Burial at Crawford Cemetery. Milton
passed away on January 27, 2016. Milton Everett
Arner was born May 11, 1925, at the Arner
homestead north of Crawford, Nebraska to Lloyd and
Bessie Pearl Arner. He was the second to the
youngest child of seven. Milton and Wilma (Baker)
Arner were married December 30, 1947, by the
Justice of the Peace. To this union there were three
children: Darlene, Carma, and Steve. In 1951 they
purchased a farm two and a half miles east of
Whitney. The place they called home for 64 years.
Milton was a farmer all of his life raising hogs, cattle,
wheat, corn, and alfalfa. Milton was a member of the
USDA Farm Service Agency and predecessors for
more than 35 years. He was on the Whitney Irrigation
Board for 20 years and on the Whitney School Board.
Milton was a member of the Crawford Eagles Club. Survivors include his daughter, Darlene Cottier and
her husband Terry of Leander, Texas. His son Steve
and wife Diana of Whitney, Nebraska. Grandchildren:
Heather Cottier of Dallas, Texas-Scott Cottier and
wife Angie of Austin, Texas-Chadd Arner of Chadron,
Nebraska-Nikki Daringer and husband John of
Chadron, Nebraska. Great-Grandchildren: Cash
Daringer of Chadron and Katherine Cottier of Austin,
Texas. Special Friend: Sheila Green of Crawford,
Nebraska Sister-in-laws: Leona Brown of Hot
Springs, South Dakota and Betty Arner of Arizona. Milton was preceded in death by his parents, his wife
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Wilma, daughter Carma and husband Bob, his
siblings: Cora, Elwin, Don, Roland, Cal, Vi. A
memorial has been established to the Crawford
Eagles Club. Donations may be sent to Chamberlain
Chapel, PO Box 970, Chadron, NE 69337.

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Editor's Note: We were saddened at the news last month that our long-time friend Mary Daniels of Whitney had passed away. For anyone who has ever lived in Whitney, and many who attended school in the the Whitney-Crawford-Chadron area during much of the mid-to-late 1900's, Mary was likely no stranger. Her roots in Whitney were deep, and she was a kind contributor of information and photos to our Whitney Reflections website. Whether it was school, church, or community, Mary etched her mark into the history of Whitney, Nebraska. ~~Larry Miller, Editor

Mary Daniels (1917-2015)

Memorial services for Mary E. Daniels, age 98, of Whitney, NE were held Saturday, November 21, 2015 at the Whitney Methodist Church with her nephews Dr. Byron Klaus of Blue Eye, MO and Reverend Merlyn Klaus of Omaha, NE officiating.

Inurnment followed in the Whitney Cemetery.

A memorial has been established. Donations may be sent to Chamberlain Chapel, PO Box 970, Chadron, NE 69337.

Mary passed away peacefully in the care of Ponderosa Villa in Crawford, NE on October 30, 2015. She is survived by sister Martha Klaus of Springfield, MO, sister-in-law Beverly Daniels of Lexington, NE, numerous nieces and nephews; and numerous great-nieces and great-nephews. She was preceded in death by parents Jake and Anna Daniels and brothers Elvin and Leo Daniels.

Mary, a lifelong resident of the Nebraska Panhandle, was born in the brand-new farm home of her grandparents, John and Elizabeth Gobel, in Gering, NE on June 21, 1917. She was the first child of Jake and Anna Gobel Daniels.

The family moved to Dawes County in 1921, eventually settling in the town of Whitney, where her parents purchased a farm in the Whitney Irrigation District.

A graduate of Chadron State College, Mary had a career as an educator that spanned five decades, all of that in Dawes County. Mary taught in rural school districts, and in the Chadron and Crawford school districts, teaching everything from Senior High English to Kindergarten. Multiple generations of Dawes County students were influenced by Mary’s teaching efforts. In fact, Mary loved teaching so much that even after retiring, she was a substitute in various schools for another 15 years.

A devout Christian, Mary was involved in numerous volunteer activities in the Whitney Methodist Church, and also served with the Nebraska United Methodist Women and the Christian Women’s Club in Chadron.

Mary lived in the Whitney area most of her adult life, moving to Ponderosa Villa in Crawford in 2011, where she spent her remaining years.

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Long before the Whitney Irrigation District was formed in 1922, giving rise to optimism that a lake and extensive system of irrigation ditches would transform the region, there was a serious and continuing need for a reliable local water system.

This 1920 stock certificate issued to William Hitchcock was the fifth such certificate issued by the Whitney Water System. According to Mabel (Burkitt) Kendrick's book Still Alive and Well — Whitney, Nebraska, a community water system was first created in 1911. Wells were dug near White River on the south side of Whitney, and a wooden water tower was constructed nearby. It would be nearly a decade before a new and larger metal tank would replace the wooden structure, and that meant years of having to deal with problems of frozen pipes, manual pumps, and a limited storage capacity.

The 1920 stock issue was likely intended to help maintain and perhaps fortify the rather archaic system that was in place. This certificate was signed by two familiar names in Whitney history: Tom Holding, listed as secretary of the system, and W. M. Burkitt, president. Burkitt was the father of Mabel Kendrick.

Mabel wrote that "…even though the wells were near the river, the water was very hard and strangers disliked its taste, but residents were used to it. Nearly every home had a rain barrel under an eave spout. At hair washing time, water was dipped from the barrel, strained through a cloth to remove mosquito larvae and heated on the range."

About a half century later, in 1975, Whitney was connected to a rural pipeline that transported water from wells in the Pine Ridge hills south of Whitney. Water meters were installed in 1985.

Friday, June 12, 2015

(Nearly two years ago, we posted this tongue-in-cheek story about the creation of "Greater Nebraska Territory," the brain-child of the late Mike Cartwright, our friend who passed away last month (5/22/15) in Whitney. Many folks well remember Mike, who was as a good friend and a great teacher, as a man who never forgot his roots. And he did have a sense of humor, when he proclaimed Cora's Place in Whitney as the capital of Greater Nebraska Territory!)

It's been almost four score and a decade since Whitney was a bustling community in the Nebraska panhandle -- a frontier town that boasted a bevy of businesses. Simply put, its star was ascending and the future was bright in the early 20th century!

But following a disastrous fire in 1927, the wrath of the "Dirty 30's," and relocation of U.S. Highway 20 some years later, Whitney endured a sharp decline. Nonetheless, even as recently as 25 years ago, in the wake of Mabel Kendrick's publishing of her book Still Alive and Well - Whitney, Nebraska, there were still vestiges of pride in this little village. But still, the erosion has festered.

But the times are-a-changing! One of the recent bright spots was the opening two years ago of Cora's Place, a quaint coffee shop on Missouri Street in the heart of Whitney. Offering antiques, books, and coffee, perhaps its most important quality has been a spirit of "never say die!" Whitney native Michael Cartwright, a long-time college professor and administrator, opened Cora's Place in August of 2011. Its name is a tribute to his grandmother.

Maintaining residences in both Lincoln and Whitney, Mike and his wife, Jeanetta, have not only sustained Cora's Place, but we learned during a visit earlier this month that they now offer a tasty sandwich for those who may have a bit of an appetite. But still, their real product is a cozy environment where locals and visitors can congregate at mid-day to enjoy some classic vinyl music, read a book or magazine, grab a bite, have some coffee, and most importantly -- bask in a bit of warm fellowship.

But now add a dash of tongue-in-cheek politics. Conversations may divert to a rekindled notion of west Nebraska autonomy. But wait a minute -- that notion has expanded to something that has a rather nice ring to it: Greater Nebraska Territory! The map above shows the lay of the new political landscape, and Greater Nebraska seems to be accorded its proper position relative to both Baja Nebraska and the far eastern provinces Where the East Peters Out. The map and related posters appear to have been the handiwork of Mike Cartwright and some of his confederates.

As fate would have it, Whitney has been declared the Territorial Capital of Greater Nebraska, and Cora's Place at 3305 Missouri Street seems to be the seat of the virtually non-existent government.

What's wrong with that?

Nothing.

We'll try to publish political postings as Greater Nebraska Territory evolves, including updates on the Territory's "No-Coast Coast Guard," which provides all necessary protection from heathen forces in the alien lands that surround our beloved territory.